Carlsbad plans to tackle the Ponto plan again

CARLSBAD —— City planners will recommend Tuesday that the
Carlsbad City Council approve a full study of the environmental
effects of a multi-hotel development near the city's southern
border.

The recommendation is an about-face for city planners, who last
month asked the council to approve a lesser environmental study, as
well as the Ponto Beachfront Village Vision Plan, a document that
defines acceptable uses, structures and appearances for development
of the 50-acre strip between Carlsbad Boulevard and the railroad
tracks south of Poinsettia Lane.

The City Council meeting will begin at 6 p.m. in council
chambers, 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive.

Should the council decide to back the full study, it must decide
who will pay the estimated $150,000 to $200,000 price tag. The
council may decide to absorb the cost itself or pass it on to
property owners.

Tuesday's decision will come after two years of planning at a
cost of at least $198,558, which does not include city employee
hours.

City planners said they embarked on the plan in 2003 because
they saw the need to organize and control development on the
properties wedged between the railroad tracks and Carlsbad
Boulevard south of Poinsettia Lane.

Ninety-eight percent of land slated for development is privately
owned and zoned for commercial use. Property owners may choose not
to develop the property or develop it individually, without
consideration of a larger plan.

The Ponto development plan calls for an upscale beachfront
resort, a three-story hotel with a restaurant and a small
conference facility, a small bed-and-breakfast type of hotel, and a
"live-work neighborhood" where people could live above the
businesses they own.

The plan has drawn opposition from a range of homeowners,
surfers, environmentalists and residents.

During the June 28 City Council meeting, dozens of speakers
offered reasons why the city should slow its march toward approval
of the plan. The crowd was so large that city staffers set up two
TV sets and several dozen chairs outside the packed council
chambers.

"The community was clear," said Councilwoman Ann Kulchin the
following day. "They really believe we need a full-blown
(environmental impact report), and I'm leaning toward that. They've
spoken with a clear message, and we have to listen."

The city has received 440 e-mails on the subject, a city
document noted.

Other council members said they were impressed with the turnout,
and most said they were in some measure swayed by the force and
logic of the arguments.

"I went into the meeting open-minded," said Carlsbad
Councilwoman Norine Sigafoose. "By the end, the idea of having a
(complete environmental study) on a project this size really
appeals to me as a way to make sure we do it right."

The Ponto Action Committee, a grass-roots collection of
residents concerned about the city's plan, organized opposition
rapidly over the past two months, collecting 3,300 signatures on a
petition demanding that the city complete a full environmental
review of the "Ponto Beachfront Village Vision Plan."

The committee took a two-pronged approach to opposing the city's
contention that the lesser environmental study was sufficient. The
group retained land-use attorney Wayne Brechtel, who worked with
homeowners to develop legal arguments opposing the city plan. The
committee also formed a public relations drive to inform the beach
community of threats to beach access, water quality, crowding and
threats to endangered species of plants and animals.

Core members of the group published a Web site called
pontoaction.com early on to offer information.

"They did a great job getting people out and they should be
congratulated," Kulchin said.